When “shoes” and “Filipina” are mentioned in the same sentence, we can’t help but think of a certain over-the-top, infamous First Lady and her obsession with footwear.
But it’s time to change that now that we have Ivy Kirzhner, who has launched her second collection of luxury footwear with the design house that she founded, ‘Saint & Libertine New York.’
Born in the Philippines and raised in New York, this young Filipino-American shoe designer is emerging as a strong player in the international fashion scene, and her designs are known for their excellent construction, embellishments and beadwork.
Kirzhner’s Autumn/Winter 2013 Footwear Collection was unveiled last month during New York Fashion Week, at the AFA Gallery in SoHo. The theme of her 70-piece collection is “Deco Western” – elements of Art Deco and the wild west are combined to form dark yet playful pieces with powerful silhouettes. These include fully handbeaded booties, studded bunny slippers and enamelled heels.
One piece is called the “Taj Mahal” – bejewelled gladiator sandals made with snakeskin and genuine Austrian cabochon crystals.
She hails from a family of artists, and her father is an architect and engineer. After studying at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT), and majoring in Accessories (shoes and handbags), she entered the fashion industry, slowly but steadily made a name for herself through hard work and a strong vision. Most people may have heard about her only recently, but she’s has been working in fashion for over 10 years, and has been mentored by the likes of Steve Madden and Vince Camuto. She is also the Creative Director of footwear for BCBG Max Azria and designer for Dolce Vita and Herve Leger.
She has started to collaborate with numerous New York based artists such as Eduardo Garza, whose 18-karat gold sculptures of human (and one sabretooth) skulls complemented her recent collection. Her first 45-piece Egyptian-inspired collection came out last September. It featured her signature Pyramid pumps in light gold and pieces with cloisonné, 18-carat-gold, and Austrian crystals, and the Marakesh snakeskin loafers with polished rose-gold studs and a glossy enamel inlay.
Last year she started her own design/lifestyle branding company, Saint & Libertine, which describes itself as a “visual style house” merging Kirzhner’s love of fashion, art, travel and photography. Under this design house she also plans to work on handbags and jewellery with other designers and artists.
She has a luxury online boutique opening this Spring, and you can find her shoes on www.shopbop.com, Harvey Nichols, Madison in Beverly Hills, Kitson in LA and ENK/SoleCommerce, Javitz Center NYC among others. Her shoes are also currently on display in the MICAM Show, Milan. You can find her and her footwear online via Twitter, Facebook and the Saint & Libertine website.
(All the photos are from Ivy Kirzhner’s Facebook Photo Reel.)
